Why the so-called achievements of Narendra Modi don’t impress me and I refuse to be taken for a ride

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Here, I will list all the reasons why I will not vote for Modi. Before that I want to make it clear that I was a hard-core BJP supporter and my family has always voted for BJP in Rajasthan , but over the time I realized that BJP and Congress are two different sides of the same coin or in simpler words they are the same low-quality wine in two different bottles.

I know this blog might receive many attacks and abuses by the Modi Army, who are never short of abuses on social-networks, but writing this is necessary to clean the carefully-crafted illusion developed by BJP over the years around the achievements of Narendra Modi.

2 . Right to Information Act (RTI)

RTI activists in Gujarat are suffering, their RTI Applications are not being responded to, and thousands of RTI applications are pending. Gujarat RTI Activists Association, which has around 5,000 members, says that there are around 14,000 RTI applications pending at different stages in various departments of the state government. According to them , these RTIs can expose corruption on larger scale. So stopping an RTI and Modi ji wants India to be like USA, no that’s not possible if you stop the Right To Information for your citizens.

Is this what you call a strong Lokpal, when you criticize central government for bringing strong Lokpal, Mr Modi? If this is what you call a strong Lokpal, then all corrupt politicians would have backed Anna Hazare for this bill.

4. No Riots after 2002

Narendra Modi ji has claimed Many times that there are no riots in Gujarat after 2002, any intelligent person would try to do a re-search on this claim. Read: No Riots in Gujarat in Last 12 years – Modi in India Times.

So, these high figures are for what when the Jobs have gone down from 2004 to 2009?

b) Education: Let’s look at the Gujarat’s education Sector.

Gujarat is the worst state in the country, when we look at the reading, writing and math skills of the rural students. Planning Commission reports Education Report. Only 7% of Gujarat’s class 5 kids can read English sentences, way below all India average and it’s better not to compare with other states.

c) Tourism: Under Modi, Gujarat has turned out to be the visitors favourite destination in India. This is a quote from Modi’s website: Potential of Gujarat Tourism

Here is a quote from Narendra Modi’s website: “In the last year Gujarat got over 22 million tourists and witnessed a tourism growth rate of over 16%, which is double of the national tourism growth rate. From Rs. 30 crore in 2005-2006, the tourism budget today is Rs. 500 crore.”

Anyone who can do simple calculation would find out that, increase is around 13% (12.8% to be exact) and not 16% as Modi tells the nation.

d) Claim: Automobile majors are flocking to Gujarat because of great industrial climate Modi has created.

Fact: Plain Lie, Tata was given sops estimated to be worth Rs. 30 Thousand Crores over a period of time for investing only a fraction (Rs 2 Thousand Crores) in Sanand, Gujarat. That’s what brought Nano to Gujarat. Modi Team confirms Mega Loan For Tata

Percentage of households using electricity as the source of lighting in Gujarat is 90.4%, ranked 14th behind big states like (TN 93.4, Andhra 92.2), many smaller states and UTs. Thus, Gujarat is not the leader in providing electricity to its populace. Interestingly, Gujarat rank fell from 12th in 2001 Census to 14th in 2011 Census.

Fact: Less than 50% Gujaratis are voting for Modi and around 40% are voting for Congress. BJP’s high vote share pre-dates Modi.

Vote Share Percentage in Gujarat Elections

Gujarat: BJP Minus Congress Vote Share Percentage

In last, General Elections (2009) in Gujarat, vote share difference between BJP and Congress was only 3.5%. Correspondingly, seats won BJP 15 and Congress 11.

In India electoral systems, winners are based on seats won in which Modi/BJP is clear winner, but that does not mean everyone in Gujarat is voting for Modi/BJP. Within Gujarat Congress too have a healthy vote share in range of 40%.

Fact: Plain lie, In last 6 years, Gujarat’s agriculture had -ve years of growth -1.08% (2007) & -8.71% (2009), and a zero growth year 0.3% (2010). Gujarat has had a very peculiar growth rate for agriculture. Although I have to say that the Sardar Sarovar Project has had a huge impact on agriculture in Gujarat.

Furthermore, another data table of Ministry of Agriculture, mentions Gujarat’s agriculture from 1996-97 to 2010-2011 (not given whether it is at constant/current price or gross/net DP), to have frequently years of high negative growth and high positive growth, the variance is so high, by selecting a year, the corresponding growth can significantly change over a period.

Incidentally, BSNL-SOMA WiMAX deal is under investigation in corruption saga of former Telecom Minister A Raja. A Raja may be booked in BSNL’s WiMax deal [Link].

In other words, it’s A Raja, who bought WiMax to Gujarat.

i) Claim: Modi made the Asia’s biggest solar plant

Intending to say, Modi made the Asia’s biggest solar plant?

Fact: Solar energy revolution in India was started by UPA govt in 2010. JLNSM was launched on the 11th January, 2010 by the Prime Minister. The Mission has set the ambitious target.of deploying 20,000 MW of grid connected solar power by 2022. Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission

Clearly Rajasthan and Gujarat, being the biggest desert states in India, solar program was likely to have the largest impact there. Due credit to Gujarat though that it beat Rajasthan to first place.

j) Also Modi PR people have claimed that “The entire length of SSNL canal network in Gujarat is around 19,000 kilometres and if even 10 per cent of it is used for this type of projects it could generate 2,400 MW of clean energy annually.” People have touted him as if he was the inventor of the idea of putting solar panels over the canals.

Fact: Again plain lie, First and foremost, the World’s first over the water solar power project is in California, United States. It’s functioning over a pond since April 2011 (picture above and below). Thus, there is nothing original about the idea of solar panel over water nor Gujarat is first to implement that.

Forget 2,400 MW, not even 2MW is a reality

In last one and half year, after 1MW launched in April 2012, not a even one MW more is added. At best there are few “announcements” of Gujarat government to fund 10-20 MW. No news of any further construction as of now. Perhaps Gujarat’s bureaucracy knows; The whole thing was just a publicity stunt, why waste more money on this one?

The 0.75 km is the total length of the existing canal top solar panels; somehow fan boys are convinced that 1,900 km (2,500 times) is being covered on war footing and try to force this lie with full rhetoric over anyone skeptical.

Just to add, the original purpose of Narmada canals, to bring water to parched lands of Gujarat (a high priority task for any Gujarat CM), as ofnow remains way behind schedule. Only 35% of the total 75000 km canal work is complete and in Modi’s 10 years as CM, 10,000 km is dug. Modi’s announced deadline of year 2010 for the task expired 3 years back.

And was this not enough? Now facts coming out that a person who earns Rs 11/ Day is not below Poverty line in Gujarat and so the person who earns below Rs11/day are 24 lakhs in number . Read, Rs 11/day and you are rich in Gujarat.

One of the biggest of my reasons to decide against voting for Modi is the rabid army BJP trolls on Twitter, Facebook. Their abusive nature can be the reason alone to tick people off. Many of the journalists are being threatened if they say against Modi and some of them even have been fired because they write against Mr Modi . Why Sagarika Ghose can no longer criticise Modi

Apart from it, Wikileaks never said Modi as fully un-corrupt and the whole cable tells Modi to be communal, and a ruler by few means and coruption in Oil refinery is evident. Wikileaks Cable on Modi – I see fake claims which say Wiki leaks founder Julian Assange said that “US Does not want Modi to be the PM because they are scared “, that too is a plain white lie.

Half of the followers of the Modi is fake, he purchases sponsored likes on Facebook , who funds BJP? Can BJP be transparent about it’s funds? Why BJP was funded 1 Crore by Dow Chemicals? The company responsible for Bhopal gas tragedy? Can BJP explain?

As if these reasons are not enough, Modi’s tongue slips many times, he said Mohandas Gandhi as Mohanlal Gandhi, said Alexander came till Bihar, Takshila was in Bihar and what not ! He is a good speaker no doubt but is speaking facts is too much too ask for?

Raghav Gakhar is defense enthusiast, writes on Defense and Political Affairs. He's really hopeful about the recent wave of new-age politics in India and foresees change in the fortunes of the sub-continent in near future.Originally published as “Reasons for not voting Modi: Facts & Lies” by Raghav Gakhar on defencelover.in